Friday, November 18, 2016

"At a time when women weren’t typically adventurers, especially at Annie’s age, it’s great fun to see a story about a girl who loves an adventure, is capable, and well-respected. I think Annie is a great model for young girls, especially those who don’t like the feminine trappings, and she gives us a great story to while away an afternoon.

"I’ll definitely be looking for more Misfortune Annie books to read & share!"

Saturday, August 20, 2016

Sister Folio and I wrote a treatment and beginning of a script called Chartres.

When we
pitched it, we were told it sounded derivitive of Di
Vinci Code. We'd created it before the book came out. I've heard many authors talk about this happening to them. It seems ideas leak out into the air and get caught by others.

Another of our scripts, No One Asked the River, takes place in China, a whipper-snapper producer said, "China? Nobody cares to watch a Chinese themed or located
movie." The very next year Crouching Tiger came out, then House of Flying
Daggers, Kung Fu Soccer, etc - big hits. Wouldn't it be ironic if that same
producer called No One Asked the River derivative now?

Ideas time travel.

We need to get our work out there when it's wanted. If only we could know exactly when that is.

Has this ever happened to you? If so, please share your experience with

I can’t
believe what wise guys invent and others, less wise, buy. Writers, take note; a quirky character can own
quirky things.Sky Mall is full of inspiration.
On the most recent trip, gone was my
favorite - the Lawn Yeti - which always made me question the mindset of crypto
zoologists.

The new Sky Mall featured improved
items to thrill those-with-everything who crave unnecessary and ludicrous gadgets.

Appropriately,
I listened to Madonna’s Material Girl
as I thumbed through the catalogue and saw a blow up thing that you’re supposed
to lean on, not your face, your whole body.On the next page, I learned I could rest secure in the knowledge that I
could make a perfect pop-up egg in an electric Eggmaster – like it’s hard to
use a pan????Then to complement it,
page 25 offered Environmentally “Green Gourmet Cookware.”Really?Must we be P.C. even when we cook?

Since much
of my writing involves food as a theme, I thought something like that could
come in handy for an oddball character.

HAVE A HIPSTER CHARACTER?

I turned the
page and puzzled over a faceless watch-
a wrist band where the time shows up on
the links of the watch band.Why? I asked
myself. Haven’t all the gear-head,
gadget-loving people moved on from watches altogether?

Then there
came the Miocrodermabrasion System that will clear those pesky pores, featuring
a pore-sized vacuum straw, no kidding!

Great for a spurned wife seeking a new lover or a
desperately insecure teen maybe?

If pores weren’t
your problem but your butt was, the Magic Benefit Panty promised to give those
who are butt-less a seriously great bubble butt.This is quite important when dancing these
days…especially if you are shaking you stuff to the namesake song: Bubble Butt.

The last one
truly confused me – a shirt with pockets under the armpits.I could understand it if it was meant to hide
a container of deodorant.But I’m sorry,
a passport, jewelry, and credit cards under your arms?Really?It advised me to put my cash there.Really?Who’d want it after it’s
been to Sweat Heaven and back? If your character
wants one, it’s called a Compression Security Travel T-Shirt.With seven (yes seven!) hidden pockets, it’s
only $69.95.But they don’t offer
reimbursement for the pain of scraped and chapped underarms.I can see a character suffering after wearing
such a thing for a few hours as he perspires heavily as the bad guy sits next
to him with a dinner knife aimed at his ribs.

GOT A NERD TO OUTFIT?

Sky Mall isn't the only place to discover quirky belongings for your characters. At Uncommon Goods you can find ideas for outfitting your nerdish secondary character. He might like a ray
gun sculpture which can be had there for only $170.

Or a skateboard stool...

WEALTHY CHARACTERS?

And for your wealthy couple a map made of license plates. They'd only need to fork out $3,900

If one ignores the other, maybe he hides in an ostrich pillow.

Or wastes money on a Back To The Future Flux Capacitor!

A Caticorn Cat Unicorn Shower Curtain?

FOODIE CHARACTER?

Being the foodie that I am, I was especially attracted to
the Spam and Ketchup cookbooks.Each
only sets your cook back about $10

And if your character is a low budget foodie, maybe he has a $13 Wilton
'Football' Novelty Cake Pan.

ROMANCE CHARACTER?

For your kinky romance
character the handy dandyBaby
Banana Toothbrush with Handle.

SCENTS:

Because you also want to engage your readers senses, they also sell cookie dough or
zombie cologne.

Have fun tooling around on these and other quirky gift sites for props. They are great places to find the little fun belongings that bring characters alive. Do you know of any cool places to find prop ideas?

Saturday, April 30, 2016

If
someone handed you a box and told you there’s loot inside custom chosen just
for you.What would you imagine the
contents would be?

[Books
perhaps?All your favorite genres?]

When
you were a kid, did you ever wish your birthday came more than once a year?How about once a month?

Ready
to commit $20-150/month to have unexpected goodies with a theme mailed to you
every month?It’s the new book of the
month club.They are subscription boxes.
And I’m not talking about the Dollar Shave Club.

These
little monthly “gifts” offer a general smattering of items each month, gear
related to your interests.

[Like
a book you choose because of your interests.I remember my father getting Books of the Month-The Godfather, The Happy
Hooker, Joy of Sex.I wonder if he had a
secret life.]

One
of my sons has rated wine choices in his monthly delivery. The other son has,
on top of that, delivered goodies targeted toward hipster guys-Bespoke Post.Among other funky, foodie items, he got gourmet
salts and squid ink which he used to take his homemade pasta dish to the next
level.He chooses from a short list, but
many of these subscription services offer boxes of awesomeness filled with
random surprises.

[like
a great book!]

The possibilities are endless now that buying on line is
standard practice and shipping costs are negligible. We’re talking
about year-round Christmas for all ages.

[Do we not love to go into a bookstore and browse,
collecting a handful of stories we hadn’t planned on getting?]

There’s Birchbox for guys,
delivering a monthly selection of grooming and lifestyle products, from face
cleaner to bow ties.

Some
subscription boxes are higher end--$100 and up--like Wil Wheaton Quarterly Co. curated by
celebrities, style experts, authors and bloggers. You might even open up to a Dungeons
& Dragon starter set.Carrots for
new parents surprises with books and toys for $120/box.

Some
are more focused like TeeBlox and Once Upon a Tee targeting fans of Doctor
Who and The Legend of Zelda with officially licensed t-shirts; Brick
Loot specializing in building items like legos; for college kids, a
care package with snacks and household items called Pijon; BarkBox for dogs; NatureBox for snackers [popular with high Coloradans?]; Tasting Room for wine; and Kiwi Crate for
3-7 year olds who like craft projects. And one I would have loved as a kid,
Tinker Crate, for older kids’ science projects.

GET
YOUR GEEK ON!

The
trend seems to be all the rage among geeks and gamers, who have flocked to
Lootcrate, 1Up, Geek Fuel, Geek Me Box, ComicBoxer, Star Wars Smuggler’s Bounty, Nerd Box.

These
thingies of the month clubs are not companies unique to the U.S.; if you are in
Australia, you can order up Box 51
and Epic
Crateness.Hero Box.

My favorite company name is Bento Box.... clever.

They
claim to use a panel of experts to pick comic issues around a theme each month,
that the value of each box is at least $60. But the monthly rates: $20 (1
mo.), $18.34 (3 mos.), $17.50 (6 mos.) Shipping: $5
in the U.S. / $12 to Canada

Some
are aimed at female geeks:Fan Mail from
who you may receive a Spider Man necklace and a Superman Comic, Gamer Girl
Monthly (which offers exactly what it sounds like),

Instead
of reading about your favorite manga or movie character, you can wear him in
the form of a t-shirt.

Friend
Alicia Howie enjoys her $20/month with S&H subscription to one of the most
popular subscription box companies, Lootcrate, especially her Labyrinth t-shirt.I wonder if Merle Haggard and Prince have
t-shirts in any company’s box of loot this month?

What
would be in your ultimate loot box?Mine
would definitely have gourmet food items, books, yellow pads, and a great pen.

Monday, April 11, 2016

Claire Walters, a local writer specializing in travel and food brought up a topic on the Boulder Media Women loop that caught my attention: those articles you see in magazines that don't appear to be paid advertising but are. You may, for example see an actual paid-ad off to the side of the article. At the very least the article itself touts the product and gives contact info. The point is, the article would likely not be in the magazine if the exposure hadn't been remunerated. YS and Boulder Lifestyle are two local examples. But companies like Subaru and chambers of commerce have them in the form of official visitors' guides. You have likely read many of these articles that aren't marked as advertising. They are essentially quid pro quo.

Our local magazines are full of advertorials. If it's not the actual point of the magazine, it's a matter of survival. I take all profiles of restaurants and other local businesses with a
grain of salt (the origins of that phrase is interesting). If it
weren't for these pseudo-journalism stories I might not have otherwise known
there was such a person/restaurant in our midst. I'm all about capitalism. Though I'm unlikely to buy based on
advertising, I might do the research to see if I'd like to know more.

You could say this is on the ethical edge. Sponsored content is deceptive to the extent it doesn't announce what
it is....just as a variety of TV media pretend to be news. There will be readers who don't understand the difference, just as there will be people who
trust the biggest ads in the yellow pages,
assume a billboard is proof of value, and that Mikey liking his cereal is an
endorsement.

And BTW "a grain of salt" was part of a poison antidote. Threats involving the poison should then be taken "with a grain of salt," with skepticism.

Saturday, February 6, 2016

Presentations 'R' Us? Not exactly, but Dick and I have been putting the finishing touches on a new PowerPoint presentation for the Rocky Mountain Railroad Club. On February 16, 2016 we'll talk about Howard Fogg's art career and his service with the 359th Fighter Group during WWII.

Oh, and we'll share one of Howard's elusive recordings from his Talking Giants album!

Sunday, January 3, 2016

Beginning tomorrow I teach a month-long class for Kiss of Death, a group under the larger Romance Writers of America. We'll communicate through an on-line yahoo loop. I look forward to "meeting" new authors and helping other writers take a look at their own writer voices.

The class is called:
Voice: Your "Song" and How to Use it to Develop Characters